Much ado about nothing

It’s 2019 and people are new year’s resolutioning all the over place. My Tuesday night Grid class had a bunch of apprehensive new faces, the health food aisle in my local Pick & Pay is noticeably low on products like quinoa and almond milk, and if you watch carefully next time you go to a restaurant, you’ll see recently ex-smokers twisting their fingers manically, their shifty eyes darting around as they jealously watch the couldn’t-give-a-fucks making their way outside for a cigarette.

Aaah, the dawn of a new year. The overblown promises we make to ourselves, only to find ourselves back in our comfortable ruts mere weeks later. Why bother, is my general consensus? That’s not to say we shouldn’t be striving for self improvement, but timing is everything. Making changes and reaching goals should be happening all year round, ideally not when we’re facing the unavoidable challenges that the start of a new year often brings. We set these massive goals for ourselves at a time when we’re under the most pressure, so it’s really not surprising when we fall off the wagon a few days or weeks later. Dry January in perpetually grey England in the middle of a dreary winter?* I’ve never in my life heard of anything so perfectly set up to fail.

*Cue sanctimonious London friends telling me how they stuck to their guns…come on, I’m ready

That said, the temptation to jump on the resolution bandwagon is quite irresistible. You whisper promises to yourself in the sweet dark of night just before sleep and take them all back during the breakfast/work maelstrom the next morning as you rush out the door, croissant and cigarette in hand, too late for your expensive new yoga class.

So what are my resolutions? Because you know I’ve whispered those sweet nothings to myself, as much as I promised I wouldn’t. This year I have laid down some achievable goals, because I’m an inspired person. I have also given most of them caveats, because I’m a real person. We’ll check back here same date and time next month to see how I’m doing…

1. Hug my dog at least 10 times every day (so far so good – although she now wears a  look of permanent bewilderment)
2. Blog twice a week. Caveat: prepare for and accept a variety of “but my dog ate my homework” type excuses, because this is my blogging history and as we know, history repeats itself.
3. Shout at my toddler only once a day, not 3 or 4 or 10 times. Caveat: does not apply in shopping centres or restaurants, at bedtime or bathtime, near swimming pools or sharp knives or around dogs, wild animals and grumpy humans.
4. Write in my journal regularly. Caveat: if the choice is writing or drinking wine, wine may be selected.
5. Do something just for me, not for my daughter, my husband, my friends or my family. Just me. Caveat: none – this is VERY exciting! What will it be? I quite fancy a solo trip to Mauritius. Might have to tone this down a bit.
6. Be happy. Caveat: this one really shouldn’t come with a caveat, but I permit a slightly below average level of happiness if I at any stage run out of wine.

What are your resolutions; did you resist the global Be Better movement this year? Let me know and I’ll help you caveat them.